This page shows the composition of councils before the elections of June 2004 (aligned with European elections). Refer to the live compositions page for links to other preserved historical files.
There are five tables for the different types of council in England: County Councils, Unitary Authorities, London Boroughs, Metropolitan Boroughs, and District Councils; followed by tables for Scottish Unitary Authorities, and Welsh Unitary AuthoritiesTwo other bodies, the Corporation of the City of London (25 aldermen, 130 councillors), and the Scilly Islands Council (21 councillors), do not fit in any of these classes and have no political groups, so they are not listed.
Councils in Northern Ireland are composed almost entirely of members of Northern Irish or pan-Irish parties and are not included in this tabulation. Nick Whyte gives a Table of 2001 Northern Irish Election Results.
Keith Edkins - last updated and © 30/09/2017 to present data as at 20/05/2004
County Councils
Exec Control Con Labour LibDem Others
Bedfordshire LC Con 26 13 10
Buckinghamshire LC Con 40 5 9
Cambridgeshire LC Con 33 9 17
Cheshire LC Con 28 16 6 1
Cornwall LC All party (4) 10 9 36 24
Cumbria LC Con + LD 33 39 11 1
Derbyshire LC Lab 13 43 7 1
Devon LC Con/LD/Lab/Lib 22 5 22 5
Dorset LC Con 23 4 14 1
Durham LC Lab 2 52 4 3
East Sussex LC Con 24 7 13
Essex LC Con 49 19 10 1
Gloucestershire LC Lab + LD 27 19 16 1
Hampshire LC Con 46 8 20
Hertfordshire LC Con 41 25 10
Kent LC Con 52 22 10
Lancashire LC Lab 27 44 5 2
Leicestershire LC Con 28 15 10 1
Lincolnshire LC Con 49 21 4 3
Norfolk LC Con 47 26 11
North Yorkshire LC Con 41 12 17 4
Northamptonshire LC Lab 33 39 1
Northumberland LC Lab 17 38 9 3
Nottinghamshire LC Lab 21 39 3
Oxfordshire LC Con + LD 25 24 20 1
Shropshire LC Lab/LD/Ind 19 11 8 6
Somerset LC LD (minority) 23 5 29 1
Staffordshire LC Lab 22 36 4
Suffolk LC Lab + LD 32 34 12 2
Surrey LC Con 51 6 13 6
Warwickshire LC Lab (minority) 20 28 13 1
West Sussex LC Con 41 11 19
Wiltshire LC Con 28 3 14 2
Worcestershire LC Con (minority) 26 14 8 9
County Totals 1019 701 415 79
Unitary Authorities
Exec Control Con Labour LibDem Others
Bath & N.E. Somerset LC LD/Con/Ind 26 6 29 4
Blackburn with Darwen LC Lab 16 37 8 1
Blackpool LC Lab 13 25 4
Bournemouth LC LDm 16 3 33 2
Bracknell Forest LC Con 35 6 1
Brighton & Hove AA Lab (minority) 20 24 3 7
Bristol LC All party (3) 11 31 28
Darlington LC Lab 16 35 2
Derby LC LD/Con/Ind 12 25 13 1
East Riding of Yorkshire LC Con/LD/Ind 28 8 23 8
Halton LC Lab 2 47 7
Hartlepool MC Ind mayor 7 22 11 7
Herefordshire LC LD/Lab/Ind 21 4 16 17
Isle of Wight LC LD + Ind 13 4 19 12
Kingston upon Hull LC Lab (minority) 2 28 21 8
Leicester LC LD/Con 9 20 25
Luton LC LD (minority) 4 23 20 1
Medway Towns LC Con 30 17 6 2
Middlesbrough MC Ind mayor 7 31 6 4
Milton Keynes LC LDm 7 16 27 1
North East Lincolnshire LC Con + LD 16 7 15 4
North Lincolnshire LC Con 22 21
North Somerset LC Con + LD 24 10 23 4
Nottingham LC Lab 7 35 11
Peterborough LC Con 30 18 4 5
Plymouth LC Lab 18 36 3
Poole LC Con 26 16
Portsmouth LC LD (minority) 15 11 16
Reading LC Lab 4 35 6
Redcar & Cleveland LC Con/LD/Ind 13 23 15 8
Rutland LC Con 16 5 6
Slough LC Lab 6 26 1 8
South Gloucestershire LC All Party (3) 21 16 33
Southampton LC LD + Ind 12 16 18 2
Southend-on-Sea LC Con 32 10 8 1
Stockton-on-Tees LC Lab 13 28 6 8
Stoke-on-Trent MM Ind mayor 5 28 8 18
Swindon LC Con (minority) 29 22 8
Telford & Wrekin LC Lab 14 29 5 6
Thurrock LC Lab 10 33 1 5
Torbay LC LDm 10 26
Warrington LC Lab 4 40 16
West Berkshire LC LD (CV) 26 26
Windsor & Maidenhead LC LDm 15 1 34 7
Wokingham LC Con 33 1 20
York LC LDm 15 29 3
Unitary Totals 716 873 655 160
London Borough Councils
Exec Control Con Labour LibDem Others
Barking & Dagenham LC Lab 3 41 3 4
Barnet LC Con 33 24 6
Bexley LC Lab 30 32 1
Brent LC Lab 19 35 9
Bromley LC Con 41 6 13
Camden LC Lab 11 35 8
Croydon LC Lab 32 37 1
Ealing LC Lab 17 48 4
Enfield LC Con 39 24
Greenwich LC Lab 9 38 4
Hackney MC Lab mayor 9 45 3
Hammersmith & Fulham LC Lab 17 29
Haringey LC Lab 41 16
Harrow LC Lab (minority) 28 30 3 2
Havering LC Con (minority) 26 10 1 17
Hillingdon LC Con (minority) 30 27 8
Hounslow LC Lab 14 37 5 4
Islington LC LDm 10 38
Kensington & Chelsea LC Con 41 12 1
Kingston upon Thames LC LDm 15 3 30
Lambeth LC Con + LD 7 29 27
Lewisham MC Lab mayor 2 41 7 4
Merton LC Lab 24 33 3
Newham MC Lab mayor 59 1
Redbridge LC Con 34 20 9
Richmond upon Thames LC Con 38 16
Southwark LC LD (minority) 6 28 29
Sutton LC LDm 8 3 43
Tower Hamlets LC Lab 35 16
Waltham Forest LC Lab + LD 18 26 15 1
Wandsworth LC Con 50 10
Westminster LC Con 48 12
London Totals 649 860 316 36
Metropolitan Borough Councils
Exec Control Con Labour LibDem Others
Barnsley LC Lab 5 47 4 10
Birmingham LC Lab mayor 35 57 23 2
Bolton LC Lab (minority) 19 27 14
Bradford LC Con/Lab/LD 35 36 15 4
Bury LC Lab 16 28 4
Calderdale LC Con (minority) 25 10 16 3
Coventry LC Lab (minority) 23 24 2 5
Doncaster MC Lab mayor 7 46 8 2
Dudley LC Con (minority) 31 30 10 1
Gateshead LC Lab 46 19 1
Kirklees LC LD + Green 16 21 30 5
Knowsley LC Lab 55 11
Leeds LC Lab 22 52 20 5
Liverpool LC LDm 31 63 5
Manchester LC Lab 71 27 1
Newcastle upon Tyne LC Lab 54 24
North Tyneside MC Con mayor 21 31 8
Oldham LC Lab 2 33 25
Rochdale LC Lab (minority) 8 30 22
Rotherham LC Lab 4 59 3
St Helens LC Lab 6 33 15
Salford LC Lab 3 51 5 1
Sandwell LC Lab 9 55 6 2
Sefton LC Lab/LD/Con 18 23 22 3
Sheffield LC Lab 1 49 37
Solihull LC Con 28 13 10
South Tyneside LC Lab 1 49 5 5
Stockport LC LDm 9 17 33 4
Sunderland LC Lab 9 63 1 2
Tameside LC Lab 6 47 2 2
Trafford LC Lab (minority) 29 31 3
Wakefield LC Lab 7 50 3 3
Walsall LC Con + LD 25 27 7
Wigan LC Lab 3 60 4 5
Wirral LC Lab/Con/LD 23 26 16 1
Wolverhampton LC Lab 21 34 5
Metropolitan Totals 467 1416 519 75
District Councils
Exec Control Con Labour LibDem Others
Adur AA Con 27 8 4
Allerdale LC Lab (minority) 16 27 4 9
Alnwick AA Ind/Con 3 2 10 14
Amber Valley LC Con 25 20
Arun LC Con 36 8 11 1
Ashfield LC Lab (minority) 1 16 16
Ashford LC Con 25 4 5 9
Aylesbury Vale LC Con 30 25 4
Babergh AA Con/LD/Ind 11 6 18 8
Barrow-in-Furness AA Lab 14 21 3
Basildon LC Con 23 14 3 2
Basingstoke & Deane LC Lab + LD 26 15 15 4
Bassetlaw LC Lab 20 25 1 2
Bedford MC Ind mayor 18 13 12 11
Berwick-upon-Tweed AA Con/LD/Ind 13 1 8 7
Blaby LC Con 25 4 9 1
Blyth Valley LC Lab 3 35 9 3
Bolsover LC Lab 31 6
Boston LC Con/LD/Ind 12 11 4 5
Braintree LC Con + Ind 26 20 5 9
Breckland LC Con 42 8 4
Brentwood AA LD/Lab 16 3 18
Bridgnorth AA Con/Ind/LD 10 2 8 14
Broadland LC Con 27 3 12 7
Bromsgrove LC Con 26 8 5
Broxbourne AA Con 34 2 2
Broxtowe LC Lab + LD 14 15 13 2
Burnley LC Lab 3 23 9 10
Cambridge LC LDm 2 14 26
Cannock Chase LC LD + Con 9 19 12 1
Canterbury LC LD + Lab 24 7 19
Caradon LC Ind 4 1 15 22
Carlisle LC Con (minority) 23 22 5 2
Carrick LC LDm 11 1 29 6
Castle Morpeth AA Lab + LD 9 10 6 7
Castle Point AA Con 39 2
Charnwood LC Lab + LD 24 22 6
Chelmsford LC Con 35 2 20
Cheltenham LC LDm 13 2 21 4
Cherwell LC Con 34 12 4
Chester LC LD + Lab 18 20 21 1
Chester-le-Street LC Lab 1 29 4
Chesterfield LC LDm 12 36
Chichester LC Con 25 21 2
Chiltern LC Con 27 12 1
Chorley LC Lab/LD/Ind 18 22 4 3
Christchurch AA Con 14 8 2
Colchester LC Con/LD 24 5 25 6
Congleton LC Con 27 2 12 7
Copeland LC Lab 16 31 1 3
Corby AA Lab 9 18 2
Cotswold AA Con 24 8 12
Craven AA Ind/LD 11 8 11
Crawley LC Lab 8 22 2
Crewe & Nantwich LC Lab + Ind 21 22 5 8
Dacorum LC Con 32 14 6
Dartford LC Con + Ind 21 16 7
Daventry AA Con 34 3
Derbyshire Dales AA Con 24 5 9 1
Derwentside LC Lab 38 1 16
Dover LC Con (minority) 22 20 3
Durham LC LDm 17 30 3
Easington LC Lab 42 2 5
East Cambridgeshire AA All party (3) 16 17 6
East Devon LC Con 35 18 6
East Dorset AA Con 24 11 1
East Hampshire LC Con 26 18
East Hertfordshire LC Con 41 7 2
East Lindsey LC All party (4) 15 12 6 27
East Northamptonshire AA Con 33 3
East Staffordshire LC Con 22 16 1
Eastbourne LC LDm 13 14
Eastleigh LC LDm 10 4 30
Eden AA Ind 7 4 27
Ellesmere Port & Neston AA Lab 10 31 2
Elmbridge LC Residents 21 8 31
Epping Forest LC All party (4)? 24 8 15 11
Epsom & Ewell AA Residents 2 3 6 27
Erewash LC Con 26 19 4 2
Exeter LC Lab (minority) 6 20 10 4
Fareham LC Con 18 12 1
Fenland LC Con 36 3 1
Forest Heath AA Con 21 6
Forest of Dean LC All party (4) 18 15 4 11
Fylde AA Con 27 2 22
Gedling LC Con/Lab/LD 21 21 7 1
Gloucester LC Lab + LD 14 11 11
Gosport AA Lab (minority) 11 12 11
Gravesham LC Lab 21 23
Great Yarmouth LC Con 26 22
Guildford LC Con 25 2 20 1
Hambleton LC Con 36 1 3 4
Harborough LC 16 1 18 2
Harlow AA Con/LD 13 9 11
Harrogate LC Con (minority) 27 25 2
Hart LC Con 21 11 3
Hastings LC Lab 9 21 1
Havant LC Con 23 8 7
Hertsmere LC Con 25 8 6
High Peak LC Con/LD/Ind 12 18 7 6
Hinckley & Bosworth LC Con 20 6 8
Horsham LC Con (minority) 22 20 2
Huntingdonshire LC Con 36 14 3
Hyndburn LC Con 18 17
Ipswich LC Lab 12 31 5
Kennet AA Con 27 1 3 12
Kerrier LC Ind 4 5 10 25
Kettering LC Con 30 13 2
King's Lynn & W. Norfolk LC Con 36 14 7 5
Lancaster LC Lab/LD/Grn 11 20 8 21
Lewes LC LDm 11 28 2
Lichfield LC Con 35 16 5
Lincoln LC Lab 6 27
Macclesfield LC Con 35 6 15 4
Maidstone LC LD/Lab/Ind 21 10 21 3
Maldon LC Con 21 2 8
Malvern Hills LC LD/Grn/Ind 13 19 6
Mansfield MC Ind mayor 2 15 4 25
Melton AA Con 19 4 5
Mendip LC Con 31 11 4
Mid Bedfordshire LC Con 38 1 9 5
Mid Devon AA Ind 11 1 8 22
Mid Suffolk LC Con 21 2 11 6
Mid Sussex LC Con 28 2 24
Mole Valley AA Con (minority) 18 1 16 6
New Forest LC Con 32 27 1
Newark & Sherwood LC Con/LD/Ind 23 13 4 6
Newcastle-under-Lyme LC Lab/LD/Con 12 29 18 1
North Cornwall AA Ind 3 13 20
North Devon LC LDm 10 22 11
North Dorset LC Con + Ind 15 11 7
North East Derbyshire LC Lab 8 36 5 4
North Hertfordshire LC Con 27 16 6
North Kesteven LC Con + Ind 18 4 5 13
North Norfolk LC LDm 16 29 3
North Shropshire AA Ind + Lab 15 4 1 20
North Warwickshire AA LD/Con 15 16 4
North West Leicestershire LC Lab 12 20 4 2
North Wiltshire LC LD + Lab 25 1 26 1
Northampton LC Con (minority) 19 11 17
Norwich LC LDm 1 14 30 3
Nuneaton & Bedworth LC Lab 8 26
Oadby & Wigston AA LDm 9 17
Oswestry LC Con + Ind 11 1 6 11
Oxford LC Lab 29 15 4
Pendle LC Lab/LD/Con 11 14 23 1
Penwith AA Ind/LD/Con 10 2 11 11
Preston LC Lab (minority) 18 25 11 3
Purbeck AA Con 13 8 3
Redditch LC All party (3) 14 10 5
Reigate & Banstead LC Con 33 5 7 6
Restormel LC LD/Ind/Con 9 23 13
Ribble Valley AA Con 22 1 15 2
Richmondshire AA 11 8 15
Rochford AA Con 30 3 4 2
Rossendale AA 17 18 1
Rother LC Con 25 3 8 2
Rugby LC Con/Lab/LD 18 16 10 4
Runnymede AA Con 32 4 6
Rushcliffe LC Con 34 4 10 2
Rushmoor LC Con 25 6 10 1
Ryedale LC Con/LD/Ind 13 8 9
St Albans LC LD/Con/Lab 20 13 24 1
St Edmundsbury LC Con 27 12 2 4
Salisbury LC Con 31 11 9 4
Scarborough 2004/03 Con 27 7 2 14
Sedgefield LC Lab 1 35 7 7
Sedgemoor LC Con 35 14 1
Selby AA Con 23 14 1 3
Sevenoaks LC Con 33 10 8 3
Shepway LC LDm 16 1 29
Shrewsbury & Atcham LC Con 22 9 6 3
South Bedfordshire LC Con 31 6 13
South Bucks LC Con 33 1 6
South Cambridgeshire LC All party (4) 23 4 16 12
South Derbyshire AA Lab 15 21
South Hams LC Con 28 3 7 2
South Holland LC Con 26 1 11
South Kesteven LC Con 31 10 5 12
South Lakeland LC LD/Con/Lab 18 9 23 2
South Norfolk LC LDm 18 28
South Northamptonshire LC Con 30 4 1 7
South Oxfordshire LC Con 27 4 9 8
South Ribble LC Lab + LD 19 17 15 4
South Shropshire LD All party (4) 10 14 10
South Somerset LC LDm 17 36 7
South Staffordshire LC Con 35 8 1 5
Spelthorne LC Con 35 4
Stafford LC Con 40 14 5
Staffordshire Moorlands LC RA/LD/Ind 21 7 11 17
Stevenage LC Lab 3 33 3
Stratford-on-Avon LC Con 27 1 22 3
Stroud LC Con 27 11 6 7
Suffolk Coastal LC Con 42 2 11
Surrey Heath LC Con 22 3 13 2
Swale LC Con 25 11 11
Tamworth LC Lab 11 18 1
Tandridge AA Con 28 3 10 1
Taunton Deane LC Con 31 5 15 3
Teesdale AA Ind 3 9 20
Teignbridge LC LD + Ind 14 16 16
Tendring LC Con/LD/Ind 25 11 13 11
Test Valley LC Con 30 16 2
Tewkesbury AA Con (minority) 18 3 9 8
Thanet LC Con 30 24 1 1
Three Rivers LC LDm 14 7 27
Tonbridge & Malling LC Con 33 7 13
Torridge AA Ind 1 7 28
Tunbridge Wells LC Con 34 2 12
Tynedale AA Con 27 9 11 5
Uttlesford AA LDm 10 31 3
Vale of White Horse LC LDm 21 29 1
Vale Royal LC Con + LD 23 21 11 2
Wansbeck LC Lab 36 9
Warwick LC Lab + LD 16 14 10 6
Watford MC LD mayor 7 8 20 1
Waveney LC Con (minority) 22 18 3 5
Waverley LC LDm 28 29
Wealden LC Con 34 15 6
Wear Valley AA Lab 25 9 6
Wellingborough AA Con 27 9
Welwyn Hatfield LC Con 28 20
West Devon AA Con + Ind 12 8 11
West Dorset LC Con 25 12 11
West Lancashire LC Con 28 26
West Lindsey AA 17 1 14 6
West Oxfordshire LC Con 29 2 12 6
West Somerset LC Con 18 2 2 9
West Wiltshire LC Con + Ind 19 2 19 4
Weymouth & Portland AA 6 13 11 5
Winchester LC LDm 18 5 29 5
Woking LC Con (minority) 17 6 12 1
Worcester LC Con 19 10 2 5
Worthing LC LD (minority) 18 18
Wychavon LC Con 31 2 12
Wycombe LC Con 46 9 2 3
Wyre LC Con 33 21 1
Wyre Forest LC Ind 9 4 2 27
District Totals 4718 2260 2389 1226